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Friday, January 30, 2009

It my not look like it but this is the result of 4 hours of work. Of corse I did spend a lot of that time struggling to get the chain saw that I rented from Home Depot started. If David had not shown up with his beautiful chain saw it would have been a total wast of a day for me. Thanks David!

This new project is basically a layman’s representation of the epidermis stratum (human skin). It is constructed using a stack of old watercolor paper, a pair of scissors, a hole puncher, a color copier, some nails, a bit of string, and a 9 foot long wall.

The project began when Veronica Tosten asked me to do an installation at Mighty Fine Arts. Instantly an image of a multi layered splattering popped into my head. Usually this sort of spontaneous imaging is just a reactionary response to a new project or material. Usually I enjoy the sensation and then dismiss the image as being a flashy, thin one-liner. But this time I wanted to explore what subconscious response created this image. What internal links were connected when this opportunity presented itself?

This project also had the unique bonus in that I had three months to play with it before the installation date. This gave me and the image time to ferment, to spend equal amounts of time at the drafting table and in the backyard daydreaming. The image grew organically as it sifted through daily input…

finding a stack of my father’s watercolor paper… sorting through the estate of an old dear friend… watching another friend cope with her second risky pregnancy… visualizing good health… discovering all my scissors dull and rusted… organizing 1000 Asian auction catalogs… flocks of grackles in the backyard, swarming of bees… body armor… fishing line… sanded wood… art lectures… art fairs… art blogging… coping with public dyslexia once again…

The result is a wall installation that is a hybrid of influences and experiences, a free association construct, a kind of diary portrayed in a low-tech, obsessive format.

It’s the continuous struggle that we all make just to keep inside of our own skin.

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

I was selected as one of 11 artists to participate in La Reunion TX's Second annual Tree Carving and Open House. This years artists are:

OLIVER BRADLEY + DAVID BLOOD

TARA TONINI + JOEY SEEMAN

ERIK GLISSMAN + ERIN GLISSMAN + ERICA FELICELLA

BRAD FORD SMITH

RASOUL KHALIQ

DAVID CARAPETYAN

ALBERT SCHERBARTH

VET

CINDY THOMAS

KEVIN OBREGON

The La Reunion Tx property is 35 acres of over grown woods. Part of reclaiming the land is having artists come out and inflict their creative urges on selected non-native or dying trees. The objective is to transform these trees into a sculpture that will remain in place, exposed to the elements, and part of the natural cycle of decay.

Above is the drawing for the basic idea of what I will do this year. I will cut a tree down to a tall stump. Then build a platform on which the wood from the tree will be stacked.

I did a tree in last years open house. Basically I turned a cedar tree into a flat botanical specimen similar to pressed flowers.

Brad Ford Smith on the Web

A BIT OF RAMBLING

You will find this is a Brad Centric blog. It reflects the artistic endeavors and creative experiences that revolve around me, the center of the universe.
Don't get me wrong. I am not a self centered egomaniac. I just choose to blog about the things that I am doing, and about artwork and artists that for some reason stick inside my head, AKA the center of the universe.
I hope that through my ramblings you will gain insight into the creative process, learn about new techniques, and find links to other artists and organizations that are universes of their own making as well.
If you see anything on this blog that you would like to know more about, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me.